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ADDRESS  BY  A.  A.  LOW,  Esq., 


PRESIDENT    <F   THIi 


©humkv  of  (^ommmtoi  the  ^Mt  of  §leiv-f  ovfe, 


Annual  Meeting,  held  Thursday,  May  3,  1866, 


iefa-iork: 

JOHN    AV.    AMERMAN,    PRINTER, 
No.  47  Cedar-street. 

1866. 


ADDRESS  BY  A.  A.  LOW,  Esq., 


PRKSIDEKT   OF  THE 


®hamb^y  of  &mmmt  mt  iht  <f  tate  of  p^iv-f  ovfe, 


Annual  Meeting,  held  Thursday,  May  3,  1866. 


|tt  far-  got  k  : 

JOHN    W.    AMERMAN,    PRINTER, 

No.  47  Cedar-strket. 


1866. 


Extract  from  the  Minutes  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  Thursday, 
May  3,  1866. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  P.  M.  Wetmore,  it  was  unanimously 

Resolved,  That  the  address  of  the  President  be  entered  at  length  on 
the  minutes  of  the  Chamber,  and  that  one  thousand  copies  of  the  same 
be  printed  for  the  use  of  the  members. 

Attest,  Geo.  Wilson, 

Acting  Secretary. 


LIBRARY 

UNP/ERSITY  OF  CAUFORNU 
SANTA  BARBARA 


ADDRESS  BY  A.  A.  LOW,  Esq., 

PRESIDENT  OF  THE  CHAMBER  OF  COMMERCE  OF  THE 
STATE  OF  NEW-YORK, 


Annual  Meeting,  held  Thursday,  May  3,  1866. 


Gentlemen  of  the  Chamber  : 

The  third  year  for  which  I  have  had  the  honor  to 
act  as  your  President  has  reached  its  close.  The  spirit, 
if  not  the  letter,  of  your  By-Laws,  now  demands  a  change 
of  administration.  Before  you  proceed  to  elect  my 
successor  to  this  chair,  let  me  cordially  thank  you  for 
the  indulgence  and  the  courtesy  you  hare  always  shown 
me,  and  ask  your  attention  to  a  few  words  which  seem 
to  me  appropriate  to  the  occasion. 

I  do  not  propose  to  dwell  upon  the  subjects  that 
have  engaged  your  thoughts  during  my  official  term. 

Your  proceedings  are  all  published  in  the  printed 
reports  annually  issued  to  the  members  of  this  body. 
If  consulted  by  those  who  are  concerned  in  what  has 
transpired  here,  they  will  be  found  to  manifest  the 
interest  which  this  Chamber  has  uniformly  taken  in 
Ocean  Steam  Navigation  ;  in  the  enlargement  of  existing 


Canals  to  the  interior,  and  the  opening  of  other  chan- 
nels ;  in  every  effort  designed  to  promote  Foreign  Im- 
migration to  our  shores ;  in  the  establishment  of  Docks 
and  Piers  that  shall  be  substantial  and  enduring,  in  place 
of  the  perishable  and  perishing  structures  that  now  dis- 
grace this  commercial  Metropolis ;  in  the  renewal  of 
the  Reciprocity  Treaty  with  Canada  on  terms  mutually 
advantageous  ;  and  generally,  in  such  matters  of  public 
importance  and  of  local  interest  as  come  within  its 
legitimslte  sphere.  I  can  testify  to  the  punctuality  and 
fidelity  of  your  Standing  and  Special  Committees,  and 
to  the  spirit  of  loyalty  that  has  animated  all  your 
proceedings — leading  you  at  times,  by  resolution  and 
by  substantial  token,  to  honor  the  illustrious  men  who, 
on  the  land  and  on  the  sea,  have  conferred  so  much 
honor  on  our  country.  Indeed,  throughout  all  the 
years  of  our  late  civil  war,  so  conspicuous  have  been  the 
leading  members  of  this  Chamber  in  patriotic  gatherings 
to  sustain  the  Government,  in  philanthropic  efforts  to 
relieve  the  poor  abroad  and  at  home,  and  in  other 
works  of  public  beneficence,  that  acts  are  sometimes 
attributed  to  this  body  which  do  not  originate  here. 

In  advocacy  of  the  measures  to  which  I  have  referred, 
a  Committee  was  sent  to  the  Convention  held  in  Chicago, 
in  1863,  and  another  to  the  Convention  that  assembled 
at  Detroit,  in  1865  ;  and  in  answer  to  an  invitation 
from  Mr.  Ferdinand  de  Lesseps,  Cyrus  W.  Field,  Esq., 
when  about  to  embark  for  Europe,  was  appointed  a 
delegate  to  "  the  Conference  of  Representatives  of 
Chambers  of  Commerce,"  held  at  Alexandria,  Egypt, 
April  6,  1865,  on  the  opening  of  the  Suez  Canal. 

His  report  is  on  file.     Judge,  now  Senator,  Marvin, 
twice  visited  Europe  as  your  delegate  to  "  the  Asso- 


'6 

ciation  for  the  Promotion  of  Social  Science,"  first  held 
in  Glasgow,  Scotland,  in  September,  1860 ;  and  next  in 
York,  England,  in  1864,  for  the  purpose  of  securing,  by- 
means  of  international  law,  uniformity  in  settlements  of 
general  average  in  the  principal  commercial  countries 
of  the  world.  An  interesting  and  valuable  treatise — the 
result  of  his  two  missions — is  now  in  the  hands  of  the 
printer. 

In  thus  glancing  at  some  of  the  matters  that  have 
e)>gaged  your  thoughts  during  my  official  term,  I  have 
no  desire  to  magnify  your  work.  A  single  brief  hour, 
snatched  once  a  month  from  the  pressing  cares  of  a  busy 
mercantile  life,  affords  little  opportunity  for  deliberation 
or  profitable  action  ;  and  it  is  well  that  this  should  be 
borne  in  mind.  I  will  not  dismiss  all  reference  to  your 
doings,  without  asking  particular  attention  to  the  admira- 
ble report  of  your  Committee  on  the  "  Universal  Paris 
Exposition,"  in  1867,  conceived  in  the  happiest  vein  of 
the  writer.     It  will  well  repay  perusal. 

With  this  brief  mention  of  some  of  the  more  import- 
ant subjects  in  regard  to  which  the  Chamber  has  been 
moved  to  act,  I  might  be  content,  and  omit  any  allusion 
to  other  and  not  less  important  measures  in  respect  to 
which  it  has  refrained  from  acting.  Justice  to  the 
Chamber  for  its  forbearance  in  this  regard,  during  three 
of  the  most  eventful  years  in  the  Nation's  history,  how- 
ever, forbids.  For,  from  the  first  organization  of  this 
body  in  1768,  to  a  recent  period,  laws  of  the  United 
States,  imposing  duties  on  foreign  imports,  have  been 
watched  with  the  utmost  attention,  and  by  memorial 
and  by  Committee  this  Chamber  has  sought  to  impress 
upon  Congress  its  deep  interest  in  every  enactment 
affecting  the  foreign  trade  of  this  port. 


And  yet,  within  three  years,  a  tariff,  largely  increas- 
ing the  rates  of  duty,  involving  instantaneous  and 
unprecedented  changes,  and  requiring  payment  in 
gold ;  internal  revenue  laws,  imposing  heavy  burdens  on 
our  people ;  and  a  National  Banking  law,  substituting  a 
National  for  a  State  currency — have  been  carried  into 
effect — without  protest  on  your  part,  without  remon- 
strance, without  appeal  for  modification  or  change. 
And  why?  Simply  because  all  the  measures  were 
demanded  by  the  exigencies  of  war — dictated  by  a 
paramount  necessity.  Against  laws  thus  enacted  in 
support  of  a  good  cause — to  sustain  the  Constitution 
and  maintain  inviolate  the  public  faith — this  Chamber 
can  have  no  ground  for  protest  or  remonstrance,  and  of 
such  laws  it  will  not  unreasonably  complain.  Objec- 
tions there  may  have  been,  and  still  may  be,  in  principle 
and  detail,  to  some  of  the  public  measures  referred  to; 
but  whatever  difficulties  or  doubts  existed  in  the  minds 
of  some,  there  was  a  love  of  country  both  in  and  out  of 
this  Chamber  strong  enough  to  solve  them  all.  Hence 
a  surrender  of  private  opinion  and  a  cheerful  acqui- 
escence on  the  part  of  those  most  affected  by  them.  It 
is  true,  indeed,  that  during  all  this  time  the  periodicals 
of  the  day  and  the  columns  of  the  press  have  teemed  with 
criticism  and, individual  suggestion — sometimes  calm  and 
thoughtful,  sometimes  disinterested,  sometimes  candid, 
sometimes  clear  and  comprehensible,  but  how  frequently 
the  reverse  of  all  this  ! 

In  its  collective  capacity,  this  Chamber  has  preserved 
a  dignified  silence.  In  the  main,  the  laws  referred  to 
have  been  well  adapted  to  the  emergency  for  which 
they  were  created ;  vindicating  the  wisdom  of  their 
framers,  and  proving  alike  the  fidelity  of  those  who  have 


been  empowered  to  administer,  and  the  patriotism  of 
those  who  have  been  called  to  obey  them. 

When  the  Rebellion  broke  out  and  raged  in  all  its 
wide-spread  wrath,  it  was  said  by  statesmen  of  other 
lands  that  it  could  not  be  suppressed !  The  war  is 
ended,  and  our  country  emerges  from  the  struggle  to 
assume  its  place  among  the  most  powerful  nations  of 
the  world. 

It  was  contended,  both  abroad  and  at  home,  that 
the  Nation  would  be  involved  in  a  debt  of  more  than 
$3,000,000,000,  and  that  paper  money  would  become 
all  but  valueless!  In  five  years  the  Government  ex- 
pended $4,000,000,000  in  the  prosecution  of  the  war, 
and  yet,  at  its  close,  the  public  debt  reached  its  utmost 
limit  at  $2,757,000,000. 

As  last  reported  it  was  some  $68,000,000  less.  On 
the  1st  of  December  the  Honorable  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury  anticipated  an  increase  by  the  1st  of  June  of 
$112,000,000.  No  increase  is  thus  far  shown,  and  it  is 
fair  to  assume  that  obligations  to  this  extent  have  been 
canceled,  and  will  never  appear  in  the  form  of  permanent 
debt.  Meantime  paper  money  approximates  to  the 
value  of  gold. 

It  was  predicted  that  the  tariff  of  1865,  being  of  a  pro- 
hibitory character,  would  not  yield  sufficient  revenue  in 
gold  to  pay  interest  on  the  public  debt.  It  has  returned 
to  the  public  treasury  twice  the  estimated  amount.  The 
warehouses  of  our  city  are  surcharged  with  foreign 
merchandise;  the  comforts  and  even  luxuries  of  life  are 
widely  diffused ;  prosperity  reigns  throughout  our 
favored  land  ;  industry  is  largely  rewarded ;  emigrants 
flock  to  our  shores  in  unprecedented  numbers;  the 
tiller  of  the  soil  and  the  skillful  workman  coming  side 


8 

by  side,  alike  willing  and  alike  emulous  to  share  in  the 
burdens  and  duties  here  presented,  in  view  of  the 
abundant  opportunity  offered  to  all.  Every  acre  of 
land  in  the  country,  and  every  lot  in  the  city  or  town, 
derives  an  added  value  from  every  new  settler  on  our 
soil ;  and  our  country  progresses,  improving  her  various 
and  multiplied  industries  and  enlarging  her  productive 
capacity,  to  become,  in  time,  a  great  source  of  supply 
to  the  other  nations  of  the  world. 

There  is  reason,  then,  to  be  satisfied  with  the  working 
of  laws  that  have  produced  and  are  producing  such 
happy  results.  There  is  reason  still  to  confide  in 
the  men  who  have  carried  us  successfully  through  a 
great  crisis.  There  is  reason,  too,  for  continued  watch- 
fulness on  your  part. 

In  the  halls  of  Congress  a  large  majority  controls,  and 
De  Tocqueville  warns  us  that  majorities  are  prone  to 
be  tyrannical.  Certain  it  is,  that  in  the  work  of  restora- 
tion, commerce  is  far  in  advance  of  Congressional 
action.  The  avenues  of  trade  to  the  remotest  sections 
of  the  South  are  re-opened,  travel  is  resumed,  fraternal 
relations  are  revived,  the  seaports  of  the  South  are 
crowded  with  shipping,  and  it  is  seen  how  much  easier 
it  is  for  men  to  adapt  themselves  to  great  political 
changes  than  to  surrender  long-cherished  opinions — 
deep-seated  prejudice. 

The  ills  that  threaten  our  commerce  at  the  present 
time  do  not  seem  to  me  such  as  spring  from  the  laws  of 
Congress,  or  such  as  attend  transition  from  a  state  of 
war  to  a  state  of  peace — a  return  from  an  abnormal  to 
a  normal  condition  of  trade,  of  finance  and  exchange. 
A  great  change  has  thus  far  been  effected  with  less 
inconvenience  and  difficulty  than  could  have  been 
anticipated. 


9 

The  prosperity  of  our  port  and  city  appear  to  be  en- 
dangered rather  by  the  combinations  of  men  who  seek 
continually  to  advance  the  prices  of  labor  beyond  what 
employers  can  afford  to  pay,  disabling  the  merchant 
from  building  new  ships  or  repairing  the  old,  and  arrest- 
ing enterprise  both  on  the  sea  and  on  shore.  The  carry- 
ing trade  is  thus  driven  into  foreign  bottoms,  and  mer- 
chandise will,  by  and  by,  seek  other  ports  on  our  coast 
where  such  combinations  do  not  exist,  and  where  such 
burdensome  charges  are  not  incurred. 

Fire  constantly  breaking  out  in  our  public  warehouses, 
largely  advancing  the  rates  of  insurance,  and  petty  thefts 
all  the  while  occurring  along  our  shores,  will  certainly 
tend  to  carry  cotton  from  our  Southern  seaports  directly 
to  foreign  marts,  and  New-York  will  cease  to  be  a  depot 
of  this  valuable  staple  if  measures  are  not  taken  to  correct 
these  evils. 

While  I  would  not  be  understood  as  counselling  indif- 
ference to  other  things,  these  should  command  your  vigi- 
lant attention. 

During  the  three  years  commencing  May  1,  1863,  and 
ending  April  30,  1866,  the  Chamber  has  largely  in- 
creased its  membership,  yiz. : 


May  1  to  December  31,  1863,  electing 17 

January  1  to  December  31,  1864,  electing 41 

January  1  to  December  31,  1865,  electing 257 

January  1  to  April  30,  1866,  electing 33 

In  all, 348 


The  By-Law  regulating  the  admission  of  members 
reads  as  follows:  "No  persons  can  be  members  of  this 


10 

Corporation  but  merchants  and  others,  residents  of  this 
and  contiguous  States,  whose  avocations  are  connected 
with  the  trade  and  commerce  of  the  country." 

However  it  may  have  been  intended  originally  to  re- 
strict the  number  of  members,  and  confine  it  to  a  certain 
class  of  merchants,  it  is  obvious  enough  that  the  spirit 
and  letter  of  your  By-Laws  are  broad  and  generous. 
And  it  is  equally  plain  that  the  title  it  early  received  and 
still  retains,  "  Chamber,  of  Commerce  of  the  State  of  New- 
YorJc,^^  would  fail  to  indicate  the  character  of  this  body 
if  it  should  aim  to  exclude  any  of  the  important  interests 
connected  with  commerce — if  it  did  not  seek  to  embrace 
them  all. 

It  is  only  necessary  to  consider  the  change  that  has 
taken  place  in  the  business  of  the  City  of  New- York,  in 
order  to  appreciate  the  importance  of  adding  to  your 
numerical  strength.  Within  a  few  years  establishments 
have  sprung  up,  the  ramifications  of  whose  trade  extend 
not  only  to  the  interior  towns  and  cities  of  the  Union, 
but  to  every  important  European  mart — the  magnitude 
of  whose  transactions  vastly  exceeds  in  amount  that  of  any 
of  our  importing  merchants  whose  counting-houses  are 
on  South  and  the  contiguous  streets.  So,  in  like  manner, 
large  corporations  have  been  formed.  Rail-road  and  in- 
surance companies,  coal,  mining  and  manufacturing  com- 
panies, and  a  thousand  other  agencies  to  develop  the 
wealth  and  power  of  this  great  country,  which  find 
their  home  and  centre  here,  and  enter  into  the  tide  of  the 
city's  busy  and  active  life. 

These  all  have  a  claim  to  be  represented  in  this  organ- 
ization, and  it  cannot  exercise  a  proper  influence  if  any 
are  excluded.  It  is  obviously  proper,  however,  that  with 
nine  hundred  members  or  more,  (as  at  present,)  the  num- 


11 

ber  necessary  to  form  a  quorum  should  be  considerably 
increased. 

Those  unfamiliar  with  the  past  history  of  the  Cham- 
ber may  not  be  aware  that  it  has  been  characterized  by 
alternating  seasons  of  activity  and  indifference — month 
after  month  sometimes  passing  without  a  quorum  ;  and,  at 
one  time,  a  period  often  or  eleven  years  without  a  meet- 
ing. Should  any  of  our  present  members  be  disposed  to 
justify  absence  from  these  halls  by  a  knowledge  of  the 
facts  now  stated,  they  need  only  to  consult  the  same  annals 
to  discover  with  what  fidelity,  at  other  times,  and  with 
what  success,  their  predecessors  have  labored  here,  making 
their  counsels  felt  in  the  city,  in  the  State,  and  in  the 
Congress  of  the  Nation. 

Contrasting  the  present  with  the  past,  there  may  be 
those  who  are  inclined  to  indulge  regret  that  the 
influence  exerted  by  the  Chamber  in  the  Legislative 
halls  of  the  country  in  former  years,  is  no  longer  felt  to 
the  same  extent.  They  might  as  well  lament  that  the 
States  of  the  Union  extend  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific ;  that  towns  and  cities  dot  the  whole  intervening- 
distance;  that  population  has  vastly  increased  ;  that  intel- 
ligence and  enterprise  have  kept  pace  with  this  rapid 
growth ;  that  agriculture,  manufactures  and  the  useful 
arts  vie  with  commerce  in  advancing  the  prosperity  of 
the  Nation ;  and  with  more  reason  complain  that  justice 
and  truth,  and  the  highest  regard  to  the  public  good,  do 
not  always  prevail  in  the  councils  of  our  State  and  city ! 

If  we  are  faithful  according  to  our  ability  and  oppor- 
tunity, it  is  enough. 

I  have  spoken  of  the  large  number  of  names  added  to 
your  rolls.  It  is  with  deep  emotions  of  sorrow,  and  with 
a  keen  sense  of  personal  loss,  that  I  recall  the  names  o-f 


12 

those   who  have  departed  this  life  during  my  official 
term. 

They  are  thirty-six  in  all :  Pelatiah  Perit,  James 
Bookman,  E.  E.  Morgan,  Thomas  Tileston,  William  B. 
Cooper,  J.  J.  Boyd,  Charles  H.  Marshall,  Watts 
Sherman,  W.  W.  Db  Forest,  Robert  B.  Minturn, 
George  S.  Robbins,  Oliver  Slate,  Archibald  Gracie 
and  Ezra  Nye,  being  among  the  number. 

Of  these,  Mr.  Perit  was  a  member  of  the  Chamber 
forty-five  years,  and  President  for  ten  years.  Mr.  Boor- 
man  was  Vice-President  for  two  years,  and  a  member  for 
forty-nine  years ;  Mr.  Minturn  was  a  member  for  thirty- 
one  years ;  Captain  Marshall,  thirty  years ;  Mr.  De  For- 
est, forty-one  years ;  Mr.  Bobbins,  thirty-two  years. 

The  oldest  living  member  is  Hickson  W.  Field,  who 
is  now  in  Europe,  elected  July  1,  1817. 

J.  De  Peyster  Ogden,  a  member  for  forty-seven 
years,  and  Moses  H.  Grinnell,  for  thirty-seven  years,  are 
the  only  survivors  of  twenty-two  of  the  former  Presi- 
dents. 

We  are  indebted  to  the  generosity  of  members  and  to 
the  active  instrumentality  of  your  Secretary  for  portraits 
of  John  Cruger,  first  President,  from  1768  to  1770; 
John  Alsop,  eighth  President,  from  1784  to  1785 ;  John 
Murray,  eleventh  President,  from  1798  to  1806  ;  Robert 
Lenox,  fourteenth  President,  from  1826  to  1839  ;  Isaac 
Carow,  fifteenth  President,  from  1840  to  1842 ;  James 
G.  King,  seventeenth  President,  from  1845  to  1847,  and 
1848  to  1849  ;  Pelatiah  Perit,  twentieth  President, 
from  1853  to  1863;  most  of  which  were  accompanied  by 
biographical  sketches  from  the  pen  of  Mr.  Stevens.  We 
also  have  a  portrait  of  Richard  Cobden,  presented  by 
Morris  Ketchum,  Esq. ;  of  John  Bright,  presented  by 


13 

Mr.  S.  B.  Chittenden,  of  Joshua  Bates  and  Thomas  Til- 
ESTON,  presented  by  other  gentlemen. 

When  so  many  of  our  oldest  members,  who  were  dis- 
tinguished for  intelligence,  activity  and  worth  are  pass- 
ing away,  we  cannot  suppress  the  desire  to  see  numer- 
ous additions  to  the  gallery  so  auspiciously  commenced. 
I  would,  therefore,  urge  upon  you,  once  more,  the  erec- 
tion of  a  building  suited  to  all  the  wants  of  this  associa- 
tion— one  that  will  do  justice  to  the  public  spirit  of  our 
enterprising  and  opulent  community. 

A  Committee  was  appointed  a  year  ago  to  act  upon  the 
suggestion  then  made  ;  and  a  subscription-book,  opened 
under  the  instructions  of  that  Committee,  is  in  the  hands 
of  the  Secretary,  awaiting  your  voluntary  contributions. 
If  the  plan  suggested  approves  itself  to  your  judg- 
ment, importunity  should  not  be  needed  to  quicken  your 
interest  in  the  undertaking,  or  to  accelerate  your  zeal  in 
its  promotion. 

A  bill  is  now  before  Congress  (if  it  has  not  already 
become  a  law)  appointing  Commissioners  to  select  a  site 
for  a  new  post-office.  Should  any  other  than  the  present 
location  finally  be  adopted,  would  it  not  be  advisable  for 
this  Chamber  to  take  suitable  measures  for  securing  the 
site  of  the  building  now  in  use  as  a  post-office,  for  the 
accommodation  of  this  Chamber  ?  The  merchants  of  our 
city  contributed  one-fifth  of  the  original  cost,  which  will 
doubtless  be  considered  by  Congress,  if  a  sale  of  the 
grounds  referred  to  is  detecmined  on.  Possibly  some 
arrangement  to  connect  a  branch  post-office  with  the 
lower  story  of  a  new  edifice  for  this  institution  may  be 
devised  and  agreed  upon. 

Gentlemen  of  the  Chamber !  In  a  review  of  three 
memorable  years,  I  could  not  separate  thoughts  of  our 
country  from  things  of  local  concern,  nor  speak  satisfac- 


14 

torily  to  myself  without  giving  a  wider  scope  to  reflec- 
tion than  is  usual  on  such  occasions.  Of  what  momen- 
tous changes  have  these  years  become  the  impressive 
epoch !  The  scourge  of  desolating  war  is  removed,  the 
animosities  which  war  engendered  have  been  banished 
from  our  midst,  and  the  smile  of  peace  beams  on  every 
countenance.  The  South  rising  from  the  throes  of  a  new 
birth,  "regenerated  and  disenthralled,"  enters  upon  a 
higher  and  nobler  life  ;  four  millions  of  slaves,  emanci- 
pated by  Constitutional  enactment,  rejoice  in  civil  and 
religious  liberty ;  thousands  of  devoted  teachers,  lay  and 
clerical,  rush  to  the  rescue  of  all  who  remain  in  the  bonds 
of  ignorance  and  vice ;  commerce  regains  its  sway  over 
all  the  courses  of  former  traffic;  river,  swamp  and  jungle 
give  up  their  hidden  treasures,  and  cotton  comes  forth 
again — to  be  welcomed  in  every  household — subject  to 
the  control  and  uses  of  man ! 

In  all  these  things,  how  much  reason  is  there  for 
mutual  and  heartfelt  congratulations — for  immeasurable 
and  unceasing  joy ! 

Now  let  me  thank  you  for  your  patient  hearing,  and, 
in  conclusion,  express  the  hope  that,  as  the  salt  waters 
of  the  ocean  in  their  inward  flow,  meet  the  fresh  waters 
of  our  lakes  and  rivers  on  their  way  to  the  sea,  and  the 
vapors  of  both  ascend  together,  to  return  in  fructifying 
showers  on  our  favored  land — so  may  the  prayers  of  the 
just,  from  North  and  South  and  East  and  West  go  up 
together,  and  bring  down  the  divine  blessing— making 
our  whole  people  one  in  heart,  one  in  hope,  one  in 
nationality,  one  in  a  common  brotherhood,  one  in  a  great 
and  glorious  destiny ! 

I  now  resign  this  seat  that  you  may  proceed  to  the 
regular  duty  of  the  day — the  election  of  officers  for  the 
coming  year. 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITv 


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